'Johnny Apple' on Serious Eats

The Mangosteen is coming. I had one in Vancouver, B.C. a couple of years ago, and it was lusciously delicious. The late Johnny Apple would be so happy. Here's a tiny portion of what he wrote about his craving for mangosteens in the Times in 2003. I will certainly toast Johnny when I taste my first mangosteen in New York.... More

Something was missing at the spectacularly moving memorial service at the Kennedy Center yesterday titled "A Celebration of the Very Full Life of R. W. Apple Jr." I just couldn't put my finger on it. The speakers included John McCain, who, in true presidential candidate fashion, called Johnny, as he was known, a great patriot; Calvin Trillin, characteristically hilarious but slightly somber; Alice Waters; and former British foreign secretary Lord David Owen. Apple protégé Todd Purdum conducted his MC duties with grace, levity, and appropriate generosity of spirit. And, oh yes, there were letters of condolence from four presidents: Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton, and Bush Senior and Junior. Guess whose impersonal words rang incredibly hollow? I report. You decide. Of... More

"More love and more joy than age or time could ever destroy." Smokey Robinson My friend Johnny Apple died this past Tuesday, and in his honor I went to the Shake Shack and had a triple dip sundae with hot caramel AND hot chocolate sauce. Johnny's great passion for food extended from frozen custard to foie gras. Of course if Johnny had been there with me we would have ordered so much more. Johnny Apple was all about MORE; more deliciously, obscenely rich food, more drink, more knowledge, more stories, and more heart and soul than I'd ever seen in one person before. I first met Johnny five or so years ago when we both served on a committee. I... More

Last Wednesday's (March 15th) New York Times featured a cover story on Charleston food by R.W. Apple. Johnny, as he is known to his friends, had been missing from the old gray lady's pages for too long. He's one of the country's great reporters, food writers and, most of all, one of our greatest eaters. Welcome back, Johnny. We missed reading about your Falstaffian eating and drinking adventures. Reading your piece made me so hungry. I can't wait to eat the fried local shrimp at the Seawee Restaurant and the gumbo at Gullah Cuisine Lowcountry Restaurant.... More